After losing several key components of a Big Ten championship team, the Penn State's women indoor track squad knew it would have some holes. Fortunately for the Nittany Lions, it appears as if one of those gaps has been filled.

Jennifer Leatherman, a junior transfer student from the Naval Academy, proved Saturday at the Penn State Relays that the spot left by the graduation of Big Ten champion and All-American Ja'Nai O'Connor is in good hands.

Leatherman placed first in the shot put with a throw of 47-feet, 7.75-inches and contributed a record-breaking performance in the 20-pound weight throw with an effort of 65-feet, 3.25-inches. The previous Penn State record was 64-feet, 6-inches held by Deshaya Williams.

"She competed extremely well. We're very, very proud of her," Penn State coach Beth Alford-Sullivan said. "She's learning good composure and she's learning how to really utilize her intensity into her events."

Obviously, and rightfully so, Leatherman was proud of her record-breaking performance in the weight throw but still thought her effort in the shot put needed some improvement.

"I'm a little rusty there," she said. "I need to get my rhythm down better. I would have loved to throw 50 [feet]. I only threw 47-7 ... It's in me. I can throw 50. It'll come out."

After spending the first two years of her collegiate career at the Naval Academy, Leatherman decided that she wanted to make track, rather than the military, a priority in her life.

"The military wasn't really a fit for me, and track was, so I started looking around," Leatherman said.

Sometime between her freshman and junior year at Navy, Leatherman started shopping for a new school. After the search, Leatherman found a home with Penn State.

And surely, she has a welcome home with the Lions after her exceptional performance at the Penn State Relays.

Although many people told Leatherman not to put too much stock into her first competition for Penn State, she thought her debut outing at her new school was important.

"It's like getting a big weight off my chest to open up big and to prove to everybody that I made the right decision to come here," Leatherman said. "It was probably more important to me than anyone."

With her first competition with her new team behind her, Leatherman can now look forward to more challenges, especially now that she competes in the Big Ten.

"I am super pumped," Leatherman said of throwing in the Big Ten. "I think it's just going to raise the level of competition that I've ever competed against. I'm really excited. It's going to be good preparation for NCAA's -- which I've never been to nationals before -- and this year I'm expecting to go. I need these big kinds of meets and competition to get me there. Last year, we didn't have the big meets so I was kind of awed when I got to big meets."

Certainly she will get her chance to participate in some big meets as the season progresses. Her first important meet will be the Penn State National Open held Jan. 29-30 at Penn State. She said that the elevated level of play in the Big Ten would propel her to a successful season and ultimately a trip to the NCAA Championship.

"This year, I feel like I'm really going to be in a good place," Leatherman said.